


The Nightmare Revisited

by orphan_account



Category: The Nightmare Before Christmas
Genre: Fan Children, Multi, OC, Years Later, time skip
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-16
Updated: 2016-01-21
Packaged: 2018-05-07 00:31:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,522
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5436722
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Years have passed since Jack's futile attempt to take over Christmas. Halloween town has sense grown and changed since then. Children have grown, babies have been born, relationships worked on. But when an ex trick or treater returns to their true home, all havok breaks out.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A world grown up

October 10, twenty one days until Halloween

Things had certainly gone in a step for the better. With the death of Oogie Boogie, Jack's person growth, and a decision to grow out words, Halloween Town turned into quite the cheery little place. In fact, Jack's pep was increasingly high this year. The announcement that his third, fourth, and fifth child were due any day now made the skeletal King extra bouncy and energetic. And secretly, a little stressed. Planning Halloween and preparing for triplets wasn't an easy task.

He was focussed at his desk when a tiny knock came at his door. At first Jack choose to ignore it, blaming his imagination for it. It came again, this time a little more aggressive. One boney fingered pressed to his mouth, waiting for it to come again. As if on queue, a louder version of the knock.

"Alright Mary, I hear you. Come in." He called, a playful smile on his face.

A small rag doll skeleton hybrid girl walked in, her yarn like hair pulled into a braid that fell to her mid back. Mary Skellington, the oldest of his children, was almost a splitting image of her mother. With the exception of half of her face being a skull like his. Her hazel eye studied her father carefully, her hands carefully picking at the. Bottom of her blouse. Both her brows were pulled in a slightly concerned expression, sliding into his study.

"Father, there's a commotion going on in town." Mary spoke more elegantly then Jack was comfortable with sometimes. She was only eight after all.

"Really now Mary? What kind of commotion?" He gestures for her to come closer, pushing his seat away from his desk.

"I don't know. I was pushing Tommy in his stroller when I saw it. Everyone was in the centre, I couldn't see above the crowd. They seemed excited." Her tone was quite, glancing around his study. "Did I disturb you?"

"No not at all. Where's your brother?" Jack left his chair, offering to take his daughters hand.

"I put him in his playpen in front of the tv. Mother is still at the market. He's not crying."

Jack couldn't help but laugh, taking his daughter to their living room. Halloween Town and gone out of its way to stay advanced in technology, mainly to avoid making the same mistakes of Christmas. It also helped with raising of children, he couldn't lie. Also, if the mayor had a breakdown Jack didn't have to leave his kids to handle it.

Within the living room was a small skeletal boy, dirty blond locks sticking out of his head. Tommy Skellington was just passed his first birthday, with occasional patches of pale blue skin. He lacked eyeballs, much like his father, but was a happy baby regardless. Sitting in front of the tv was how his sister usually babysat him, something Sally attested. It was their little secret though.

Jack scooped the boy up, resting him against his shoulder. He babbles an attempt at daddy, pressing his palms into Jack's cheeks. There wasn't a moment in Jack's life he wasn't proud of his children, they brought him more satisfaction being Pumpkin King ever did. Sometimes he had to do both at the same time. After giving Tommy a solid pat on the back, he turned back to his daughter.

"Mary, would you mind taking me towards this commotion?"

"Yes father."

Jack plopped the toddler into his stroller and followed the lead of his daughter. She wasn't kidding when she said the place was packed. Monsters and ghouls of all ages were gathered in the square, gossiping and chatting. Now his curiosity had peaked. Jack instructed Mary to watch her brother while he checked it out.

In town square was enough to give Jack's hollow chest cavity a restart. The infamous grown up trick or treaters, Lock, Shock and Barrel were gathered around an all too familiar form. Grown into all their odd features, they were still gaunt and creepy. Where blush would normally be their skin was just darker. In the middle of them was a long sense faded scar of a being.

Long and pale with raggedy cat looking ears and a whip like tail. Everyone else knew them as Misery. Jack knew them as Misery, the creature that trained the trio in their rotten ways. Misery was originally part of their group, but took off once Oogie Boogie came into play. Everyone thought they were double dead. No, they just grew up. Their long smile was still their most prominent feature, a Glasgow smile meats Cheshire Cat that reached under their eyes. Jack didn't even have time to digest the grown trouble maker before they laid eyes on them.

"Oh my stars Jackie! You haven't changed a bit!"


	2. The business of Misery

October 10, twenty one days until Halloween.

Yes, it was true, Misery was proud to return to their humble starting. The creepy little town was where they first arrived when their unfortunate passing came, and it was the perfect place to raise a baby. Learning Misery gave birth to a child would give Jack a bigger startle then the idea Misery was back in Halloween. Right now, intimidatingly feline like eyes were fixed on their old victim.

“When did you get here…?” Jack said, his voice trailing off a bit. Their eyes had never seemed so vast when they were a child.

“Just this morning. I haven’t been home in so long!” Their voice cheered, throwing their clawed hands up in the air as they circled Jack, no malicious feelings in their body. “My how it has changed!”

Jack couldn’t help but nervously watch cheery looking terror. It was over ten years since he last seen the gaunt, thin, sharp looking creature. Why come home now? God, did Jack ever hope they grew up in the amount of time they had been gone. The last thing he needed was a grown up trick-or-treater. He could barely keep his reigns on child going on teenage Misery.

“Why did you come back, Misery?” His voice was unintentionally slow and hesitant, his brain still processing what was happening before him.

“Oh, it’s a really long story, and not something I want to discuss here. All that I want to say in public is I need a job and a stable place for my boy, and where else to pick than where I grew up?” They threw their arms up enthusiastically again.

This was the first time Jack noticed something oddly different in Misery. Despite the permanent smile etched into their cheeks, their eyes looked tired. Their hair was a razzled dark brown, completely unorderly. Even their claws weren’t the shining black they usually were, but were completely unpainted. For the first time since he met them, he felt kind of sorry for Misery.

“Well, where are you staying?” He inquired, one brow bone raising.

“With us!” One over enthusiastic voice cheered from behind.

The voice came from none other than the ex trick-or-treater Lock. It was common knowledge that Lock and Misery were cousins, despite the only family resemblance being the crooked grins. He grew thin and long, his tail hovering above the ground as he approached the conversing due. One arm playfully wrapped around the shorter Misery, pulling them into an awkward side hug.

“Family is always welcome with us! Besides, who else would love and tolerate Mis’ and little Lucian like we would?” His eyebrows raised in almost a challenging expression, wanting Jack to protest Misery staying.

“Little Lucian?” His voice questioned.

Lock removed his awkward side hug from Misery to gesture Shock and Barrel over. To Jack’s shock and slight distaste, Barrel came holding a baby, around Tommy’s age.

“This is little Lucian!” Lock cheered, the challenging look remaining solid on his face.

“He’s pretty calm little dude.” Barrel added, his fingers being crushed in the child’s grip.

“Thank god, I couldn’t deal with him if he cried like your kids do. No offense.” Shock chimed in, rolling her eyes under her over sized hat.

As if on queue, Mary was finally able to pull her brother around the curious onlookers to see what exactly was the big deal. Her expression was curious, studying the unfamiliar face of Misery and their baby. She looked up to her father, ignoring the trick-or-treaters existence.

“Father, who is that?” Her voice was soft, matching her expression.

“No one, sweetheart. Just a new arrival.” He turned his back to the cluster of trouble makers to speak to his daughter, but he did give them a hard glance. “Quick, let’s get going, it’s getting late.”

Mary wasn’t one to question her father’s requests, but she did steal one last glance at the new figure. The first thing she noticed was their large eyes, which felt extremely out of proportion to their face. To make the appearance more off, the eyes themselves seemed to belong to a giant cat and not a person at all. Mary made a mental note of that, and of how their mouth never closed all the way. A permanent snarl.

“Tommy is getting cranky anyway.” She murmured, reaching for her father’s hand.

Jack gave them one last hard look, a warning threat in a way. Lock gladly returned this look, ignoring the groan and eyeroll of Shock. Barrel was quick to draw his attention back to the tired looking Misery, offering them a more sympathetic look. He still kind of admired them for their spark.

“So Mis, how about we get you settled?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy mother of long chapter batman! I'm working on this story as a part of my final for my creative writing class so hooray! Regular updates!


	3. A long walk and small talk

Once they cleared out from the main part of the town, Misery gave a long sigh. It wasn’t as obvious then, but they were bone tired. The trip there wasn’t an easy one, especially with Lucian being too little to keep quiet. Trains were rough and bumpy, and people stared at them. Despite the relief to be away from travel, Misery couldn’t wait to crash and forget the whole ordeal.

The silence was a little uncomfortable, but Barrel was the one to pipe up to break it. “So, other than having a baby and moving back, what have you been up to for so long Misery?”

Their mind worked around the story for a bit, wanting to figure out what parts the trio didn’t need to know yet. 

“Well, I had a job before I got pregnant. I worked with the recently deceased, particularly the extremely disfigured. I got a kick out of their reactions to all this.” One hand waved in front of their face, particularly their mouth

“That must have been a riot!” Lock cackled, jumping ahead of the others.

“Oh it was! They feared everyone who died ended up looking much more ghoulish in death. Surprise! Only Halloween victims do.”

The trio gave a small, nervous laugh at that comment. It wasn’t exactly funny, but it was true. Even those who didn’t die gruesomely ended up looking kind of… odd.

“And what about Lucian’s dad?” Shock asked, a peculiarly curious expression on her face.

“Oh, he’s a demon prince. His mom, the current ruler of his sector is off doing whatever demons really do and he has to stay. We’re together and stuff, he just can’t come live here yet.” Misery said, the faintest of a dark blush echoing on their cheeks.

“Ooooh, nasty Misery score big! In all my years I’d never think you of all people would get hooked up with a prince!” Lock’s grin twisted, shark like teeth flashing wide.

“Ignore him Misery. He’s really excited you’re back, we all are. Lock’s just fucking stupid.” Shock stated, giving a small glare over to her accomplice.

“You don’t mean that, yooouuu love me!” He jeered, leaning in close to press his cheek against hers.

“The same why I love my period, at least I have you babies to deal with instead of being pregnant.” She teased, shoving him away again.

“They do this a lot. It’s kind of gross.” Barrel said to Misery, giving a faint eyeroll.

“Flirting always is.” They agreed, nodding to him.

Besides the bickering of Lock and Shock, and the few moments of crying from Lucian to be held by Misery, the rest of the walk was silent. There wasn’t really much Misery wanted to talk about where people could hear, and the others felt no need to press them on their personal life. There’d be plenty to talk about once they actually got there. No one wanted to commented on how dead tired Misery looked either. It felt wrong to see such a powerful character of their childhood look borderline of death again.

Getting to the cliff side house was a huge relief for Misery. The amount of energy they spent on traveling and catching up should be an illegal amount. Being out of the public eye with their foul view of them was nice too. Now they could just cuddle up with Lucian, put on some tv, and crash. If everyone’s view of Misery remained the same as when they a kid, no one would dare disturb Misery while they’re trying to rest.

Misery didn’t actually like the fear they held above people. Sure, they were an angry kid. No one could blame a kid who was mutilated in a nasty car crash for being angry. Misery took it to a different level. They started the whole idea of trick-or-treaters, and was prone to scrapping with other children of their age level. It was a good thing Misery left when they did, because man did they ever need someone who could handle their anger. An actual parent, not just Halloweeners who hadn’t even seen a child since they were alive. And for some, that was a really, really long time.

The first thing that caught Misery’s attention was the upgraded cage elevator. The original one could barely hold the three as kids, it was relieving to see that thing gone. Even as a kid it made Misery a little nervous. Maybe it broke and they realized how dangerous it was? This new elevator cage at least had room for multiple passengers.

“You’re gonna love it Mis! We got all the cool stuff people on the living side have, like tv and video-games and shit like that.” Lock sounded overly enthusiastic about having Misery stay with them, even if they had to handle a baby too.  
“You and Lucian can have my room until we can hit down and get things for you guys, I like the couch anyway.” Shock offered, smiling over at Misery. For a second, Misery could’ve sworn she was staring at Lucian after the offer.

“I really appreciate the offer, you got to hang out with me for a bit though.” Misery said, closing their eyes as they smiled.

“Deal!” Shock agreed, ignoring Lock’s envious glare. He was just a big kid when it came to jealousy.

Lucian was a little startled by the sudden jerking movement of the elevator, expressing this with a small squeak and a tightened grip on Misery’s shirt. They couldn’t help but be humoured by their baby’s reaction. He wasn’t nearly as fierce as people would expect, considering his parents. Misery secretly hoped their image wouldn’t rub off onto how people perceive Lucian, he was his own person after all. He was a very sweet person at that. Always trying to share with Misery, not being fussy, even though he had evident fangs coming in. It made Misery wonder what they did to deserve such a sweet creature.

This time it was Misery who was startled by the ending jerk of the elevator. Their feline-esque ears stood straight up in response, tail fuzzing out in fear. Misery couldn’t help but gulp hard at the confused looks from their colleagues. Right, they quietly thought to themself, I’m still some sort of deadly to them.

“I was just lost in thought.” They murmured, guiltily looking down at Lucian.

There was no comment at that moment directly targeted towards Misery, the trio letting them leave first. Barrel followed on their heels, slowly approaching behind them. Once he knew Misery had seen him in their peripherals he offered them a sympathetic smile.

“Don’t worry, it startles me sometimes too.” He murmured, checking behind him for the other two.

Misery couldn’t help but smile at that. Barrel was a sweet kid, always was. Sure, he was quiet the majority of the time and a bit of a push over. But he meant well, and that’s what matters at the end of the day. Out of all of them, Misery currently only felt comfortable leaving Lucian with him for extended periods of time.

“Thanks bud. It’s just been so long since I’ve been here.” Misery said, looking kind of distant as they stared at the house.

“We know, everyone thought you were dead.”

“Everyone’s acting like I came back from the dead. Can’t really blame them, last time most saw me I was some pissy little kid.”

“Little kid? Yes! Pissy, never!” Lock chanted from the background, sprinting a bit to the door. “You were kind of a god Mis, don’t downplay it. We’ve all mellowed out since we last saw you, everyone knows that. They just expect you to be the same angry brat because that’s what they see when they think Misery!”

“As much as I hate to admit it, Lock’s telling the truth.” Shock added, looking a little breathless as she approached the rest. “People assume everyone who left Halloween stayed the exact same way, like we freeze in whatever time period of our life we were in when we left. Clearly that’s not true, as you have a kid and a shit ton of responsibilities. Just ignore Jack and the lot, they think they know everything in the universe.”

That made Misery feel a little bit more comfortable with their choice. People were just stuck in old ways, and those would fade in time. That was to be expected, wasn’t it? Even the dead thought that way. Misery of all beings should know that, they used to work with the recently deceased. People just needed time to learn to reset their thought process.

“Why are we discussing this on the front porch when we have tv and food inside!” Lock shouted, forcibly drawing all the attention back to him. “The doors unlocked! Go, help yourselves!”

Despite the statement sounding like he was insisting they go in before him, he was the one to swing open the front door and stomp in. A scoff and eyeroll came from Shock, holding the door open for the other two. Misery mouthed a thank you to her, which got a nod as a response. It felt nice having the small gesture offered to them.

Misery was relieved to finally put Lucian down on the ground, their arms aching from lugging him around all day. His stroller broke a while back, and it was so great when Barrel offered to take over with carrying him. But he got whiny before Misery could get any actual sort of break from him, so it was almost pointless. At least now Lucian could explore without Misery’s arms turning into puddles.

“Now, I don’t know what sort of super vampire-” Lock started before getting cut off.

“Demon, his dad’s a demon.” Misery corrected, a hint of snark in their tone.

“Pardon me, almighty Mis. Anyway, I have no clue what’s going on with your kid. But, like any place in Halloween, we got spiders. And rats. They’re kind of everywhere. Can he take that?”

“Duh. He’s a baby, but he’s just as dead as I am. The worst that’ll happen is he gets started by something and screams.” It was Misery this time who gave an eyeroll, the corners of their mouth raising slightly in a smirk.

Now, Misery didn’t have much expression when it came to smiles and such. Their mouth was kind of frozen in place. It was grim and unpleasant to look at, but you got used to it at one point. Misery didn’t find it as nearly as shameful as they did when they were younger, but it lead to some awkward looking expressions. A constant smile meant anything other than a pleasant look came off unnerving, and kind of intimidating. Not being able to fully close their mouth didn’t help the matter at all.

“Hey! I was just trying to look out for you and rugrat here. Never had a baby crawling around here before, it’s kind of nerve wracking.” Lock stated, a dark blue blush echoing on his cheeks.

For reasons unknown, Misery found this image hilarious. So hilarious, they cracked up laughing. Their laugh was hollow and loud, something you’d expect from a banshee of sorts. Shock almost immediately joined in, Barrel following shortly after. Lock’s blush only get worse until he himself started giggling.

After what felt like centuries of giggling, Lucian too fixated on a bug he was determined to chew to death to care, Misery spoke. “Lock, hun, I’m so sorry for laughing like that. But it seemed so out of character for you. Lucian is a demon, as well as a corpse. He’ll be just fine here, trust me.”

There was nods of agreement, as well as sleeves wiping at teary eyes. No one would admit it immediately, but they all needed that laugh. The tension was awkward and thick, and had finally faded at Misery’s spontaneous laughter. None of them had ever seen Misery go so long with being serious.  
“God did I ever miss you kids. I need to wash up though, I feel gross and kind of grimy. Can you guys watch Lucian until I get back?” Misery asked, still dabbing the sleeve of their sweater and their eyes. A chorus of yes was their answer, so they comfortably left to clean up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a pain to end lmao


	4. Staring is rude

October 10, twenty one days until Halloween.

Misery spent at least an hour and a half in the shower. They didn’t even think they had showered in the past week, and it felt so good. Feeling all the nasty grime and dirt run right off them was some sort of heaven. At some point Misery could’ve sworn blood was coming off of them. God knows when that got there and how long it was there. At least they could finally feel their skin without needing to scrub.

Stepping out of the shower made Misery realized they had no clothes. There was no way in hell they’d ever put their filthy clothes back on, they’d need some serious cleaning first. Misery was stuck standing awkwardly wrapped in a towel, feeling their chest tightening. They gently dragged their nails across their skin, shifting their weight from one foot to the other. The idea of leaving the bathroom, dressed in nothing but a towel, made the rising idea so much worse.

The trio were paying attention to the running water though, and couldn’t help but feel a little confused. What was taking them so long? They clearly were done, and getting dressed didn’t take this long for anyone. There was some glancing at each other, no one wanting to comment on it. All were a little oblivious to the raising anxiety attack within Misery, but Shock was the first to decide to investigate.

“I’m gonna go check on them, okay?” Shock said, receiving nods from the boys as a response.

She got up and slowly approached the bathroom door. Part of her couldn’t help but hesitate before knocking on the door, the entire situation feeling awkward. Misery having some kind of anxiety attack on the other side and Shock staring at the door, hoping they’d just pop out and be cheery. But she had a feeling that wouldn’t happen, so she sucked up any kind of awkwardness she was feeling and knocked on the door before opening it a tiny bit.

“Misery?” She called in, glancing at the thin towel clad figure. “You okay?”

“Oh! I, uh.” Misery paused, heavy dark blush growing on their face. “Er, yeah. I just, mm, don’t have any clean clothes.”

“Oh!” Shock said, feeling a wave of relief flooding over her. “Is that it? You can borrow some of my stuff if you want. Come on, the boys won’t look.”

Shock couldn’t help but smile at the anxious looking Misery, opening the door for them. All the anxiety felt like it was leaking out of Misery’s feet at the offer, a slow breath escaping them. A simple fix for a simple problem. They should’ve known someone would’ve offered them clothes, especially considering how much of an ass kisser Lock tended to be.

Misery slid out of the door, tailing whipping around behind them. The duo slunk around, Misery taking a moment to watch Lucian aggressively teeth on Lock’s tail. It brought them a low joy to see the two getting along, more anxiety leaking from their body. They continued to follow Shock into her bedroom, clutching their towel tight around their body.

Once in the bedroom, Shock closed the door behind her and slunk against it. Misery themself gave a low sigh of relief at the closed door. Something about being behind a door with Shock was soothing. There felt to be less judgement from when they were around Lock, who kind of idolized them. It put a lot of pressure to not screw up, even though Misery didn’t know what screwing up would entail.

“Alright, so now that we’re here, what do you wanna borrow?” Shock gave Misery a small smile, gesturing at a large wardrobe. “I got too much as it is.”

“Oh god,” Misery ran their hand threw their hair as they slowly opened it. “I’m not intruding am I? Seriously I don’t need anything, I could just wear my clothes.”

“Nonsense! I insist, those need a serious wash.” Shock gave them a grin, taking her hat off to let her half fluff out. Misery realized that Shock’s hair had thickened up since she was a kid.

“Where do you keep the sweatpants?”

Shock gave a bit of a cackle before digging thru the wardrobe to help Misery search, pulling out a black tank top and a pair of baggy sweatpants. “Will this combo work?”

“Yes,” Misery said, feeling relief flood their body as they took the clothes. “I hate to be rude, but would you mind turning around?”

“Pffft, nah I totally get it. Not looking!” Shock said, turning around to face the door.

Misery felt a wave of relief at this, and began to awkwardly pull the clothes on their thin body. They couldn’t help but blame a late puberty for why their body looked so…... unfilled. Despite clearly being the body of an adult, Misery felt like it didn’t look very grown up. Sure while pregnant they got more hips and their breasts came in, but now that Lucian was almost done breastfeeding it went back to its original state. Long, thin, no clear indication of any form of traditional traits of someone with their sex.

“Alright Shock, you’re good.”

Shock was a little stunted to see this too, but for different reasons. Misery was such an intimidating factor in her life as a kid, a mix between a God and a sibling. But seeing them now, in clothes that clung to their borderline malnourished body made Shock feel pity for them. Something must’ve gone wonky with Misery’s life in order for them to look so fragile, but it wasn’t her place to ask about that right now.

Unintentionally, Shock was staring at Misery for a little longer then what made them comfortable. When the staring didn’t let up, anxiety rose back in their chest at the curious eyes. They knew she didn’t mean to stare, Shock was still kind of young in comparison still. She was just turning nineteen, if Misery’s math was right, while they were bordering twenty four. Those five years did a number.

“Uh,” Misery murmured, voice hitching.

“Oh!” Shock gasped, feeling a hot dark bluish blush flood her cheeks. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to stare. It’s just, wow. I never thought I’d see you with an adult, you look so different!”

There was a bit of awkward tension as Shock put her witches hat back on. She couldn’t help but feel shame for being so fascinated in Misery’s body. It was so powerful when they were kids, lean with muscle and a bit of childlike fat. To see such a shadow of that being in front of her, thin and starved, felt wrong. How on earth did this starved looking figure even survive being pregnant? Hell, how did it take care of a baby now?!

“Can we get going now? I fear for my baby’s afterlife with how he was going after Lock’s tail.” Misery said, awkwardly fidgeting with their hands.

“Oh yeah, sure.” Shock agreed, opening the door behind her and leading the way down the hall.

Shock didn’t want to admit it, but she wanted to beat Misery to the living room to warn the boys. Barrel wouldn’t say nothing, but Lock had a big mouth. God knows how many jokes about how her breasts were doing when puberty first became a nightmare of hers. She knew something wasn’t right with Misery, and there had to be something more about coming home. It wasn’t a right time to try and get them to open up though, and it wouldn’t be for a while.

Her awkward scuttling did reward her by getting there before Misery, but she knew it wouldn’t be long before they caught up. Her presence was met with two confused expressions on Lock and Barrel’s face, making her wonder how frazzled she must look. There was a gut feeling telling her that she couldn’t verbally say anything without being overheard, so she rose one figure to her lips in a shushing motion and gave a solid glare.

Before Lock could blurt out a question, Misery stepped into the living room. Immediately he understood why Shock made the gesture, and was able to keep his mouth shut on making any form of comment. Instead he gave a glance at Barrel, trying to read his expression. As per usual, Barrel was able to keep a positive appearance.

“Wow Misery, you look like a whole new person.” Barrel said, giving a wide smile. “Never knew new clothes and a shower could have such an effect.”

Misery couldn’t help but smile wide at that, feeling relief. Good, no one was going to make any sort of negative comment on their body. “Thank you Barrel, I feel like a whole new person.”

“You could totally pass as living Mis, that’s how solid you look.” Lock grinned, ignoring the glare from shock.

“Haha very funny. Once you get passed the whole grin for days, ears and tail, and palor, I totally look alive!” They made an exaggerated eyeroll, the corner of their eyes squinting to show their humour. “How’s Lucian been?”

“Sharp.” Lock muttered, his tail whipping up for him to hold.

“Do you know he’s teething? Cause he took a good chomp out of cry baby here.” Barrel gestured to Lock, his own grin forming.

Lucian just looked over at his parent, offering a wide grin that had only about two teeth. Misery couldn’t help but give a snort in amusement.

“Yeah I know he’s teething. Wait until you get a bite in the tit, then you know what true agony is.”

The room burst in cackles, everyone finding Misery’s kind of crude comment hilarious. No one wanted to admit they had all virtually grown up, but it was true. At least it was kind of funny. Misery had tits and a kid, Shock was getting cranky and putting on a bit of weight the boys didn’t dare comment on, Lock’s voice still cracked and Barrel was catching up to him in height. It was weird for them to think of themselves as adults.

Misery scooped up Lucian, plopping themself on the couch next to the two boys as Shock occupied a nearby chair. The trio shifted gaze between themself, knowing they all were thinking the same awkward thought. There was a bit of shame with it, knowing they shouldn’t even have this concern on their mind. But there it was, as obvious as the two tails between Misery and Lock.

“Hey, is anyone else hungry?” Misery asked, oblivious to the silent communication between the three. “I’m starved! I could totally go order us a pizza.”

“Sounds great!” Lock shouted before anyone else could. “We’re not picky when it comes to pizza, as long as it’s not healthy.”

“Fair enough, where’s your phone?”

“Downstairs in the kitchen.” Barrel said, his own pleasant surface beginning to crack.

“Be right back then.” Misery said, a cheeriness in their town as they left to order the pizza with Lucian balanced on their hip.

Once they were gone, the trio gave a long hard sigh as they tried to think where to even start. This was going to be harder than predicted.


End file.
